GRANTS of £1,000 have been approved for the new Honda Civic IMA petrol electric hybrid.

The PowerShift grant, which must be applied for before buying, will be payable directly at the time of purchase, allowing a single transaction for customers and an effective on-the-road price of £14,000.

The grant means the Civic IMA is just £5 more on the road than the five-door Civic 1.6 VTEC SE Executive, while offering combined fuel economy of 57.6mpg, VED of £75 per year, benefit-in-kind tax at 12% of P11d price and a full discount on the London congestion charge. Honda expects to sell 500 IMAs in the UK this year, rising to 1,500 in 2004.